


nothing came out.

by heartshapedcookie, heereandqueer



Category: Person of Interest (TV)
Genre: Ethan says ahuva and that's All That Matters, M/M, ben is frustrated and Ethan and cooper are there to make him feel better and cheer him up, just a lil cute drabble, no warnings its literally just dumb syrupy fluff, tired boys
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-01-11
Updated: 2018-01-11
Packaged: 2019-03-03 15:35:50
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 833
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13344207
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/heartshapedcookie/pseuds/heartshapedcookie, https://archiveofourown.org/users/heereandqueer/pseuds/heereandqueer
Summary: Ben's grappling with writer's block and a lack of faith in his abilities. Ethan and Cooper bring him to bed.For Hailey.





	nothing came out.

**Author's Note:**

  * For [heereandqueer](https://archiveofourown.org/users/heereandqueer/gifts).



> for hailey, who's literally amazing and i fucking love her so much

“Ben?”

 

The man in question reluctantly tore his eyes away from the screen before him, too irritated to blink away the colorful splotches that cart-wheeled across his field of vision. He had been staring intently at his laptop for the better part of five hours now and his retinas were starting to sizzle with a sharp, flinty pain. Scrubbing at his eye with the heel of his hand, Ben finally glanced at the tiny clock display in the corner of his document and realized that it was nearly three am. He was giving Ethan a run for his money.

 

Ethan shuffled out of the bedroom, Cooper trotting loyally behind him and occasionally sniffing errant puffs of lint or Nebula’s toys to confirm that they didn’t pose a threat to his owners. He had finally changed out of his ratty hoodie and into his slightly less appalling MIT sweatshirt; the hood was pulled over his tumbled curls. A pair of Ben’s wool socks—foisted upon him by his mother, who had fretted endlessly about how his toes would hold up against New York’s harsh weather—covered his feet. The sight was endearing enough to thin the stormclouds that had gathered in his head, however briefly.

 

“I know I’m a huge fucking hypocrite and everything, but shouldn’t you be coming to bed?” Ethan asked, reaching down to scoop up Cooper. The dog readily leapt into his arms, but Cooper was no longer puppy-sized and subsequently a lot more difficult to lift for someone whose exercise was limited to marathoning  _ Star Trek  _ and walking Cooper down to the corner bodega. Ben watched the two struggle for a minute, his annoyance with his current assignment slowly abating as his embattled boyfriend attempted to deadlift their dog. Finally, Cooper realized they were making little progress and leapt out of Ethan’s arms with a disgruntled boof, padding away in search of Nebula.

 

“Wow, thanks for that,” Ben deadpanned, smiling inexorably at Ethan’s offended expression.

 

Ethan huffed before crossing the living room and taking a seat next to his boyfriend. “What’re you working on?”

 

The thunderhead of frustration returned, casting a pall over his mood again. “It’s this Wall Street article still. I thought I had enough resources and interviews, but everything I write just sounds… weak. It’s just not good.”

 

“Benj, I’m sure it’s good. Literally everything you write is good,” Ethan added solemnly. 

 

Ben shook his head, too annoyed with his own perceived shortcomings to even pick a fight with Ethan for using that cursed nickname. “No, it’s—it just sucks. It sucks and I don’t know how to fix it and the deadline’s fucking  _ tomorrow  _ and I just… I can’t write, Ethan. Nothing I write is good.”

 

There was a pause, punctuated only by the sound of Cooper boofing a greeting to Nebula in the other room. Ben kept his gaze firmly fixed on his keyboard, afraid he might tear up if he tried to meet his boyfriend’s eyes, and tapped a harsh rhythm against his knee. A pale hand slowly reached for his active one, twining its long fingers with Ben’s callused own until he finally relented to the gesture and ceased his tapping. He exhaled forcefully and squeezed Ethan’s hand, trying to dispel the stormclouds.

 

“You’re so talented, Ben,” Ethan said softly. “You really are and—and I’m not just saying that. Your writing makes me feel stuff, even if I have no idea what it’s about. Just because you’re having trouble with one piece doesn’t mean your stuff isn’t good. You have a gift, ahuva.”

 

Ben’s cheeks prickled lightly with blush at that particular term of endearment. He had been ecstatic to learn that Ethan spoke some scattered Hebrew and was doubly thrilled when he broke out what had to be one of the sweetest words in any language he had ever heard. It wasn’t often that Ethan was especially affectionate, but when he was, Ben couldn’t help but melt. 

 

“You believe me, right?”

 

“Maybe,” Ben replied, leaning over to press a kiss to his boyfriend’s forehead. “I’ll consider it.”

 

“I’m right,” Ethan protested.

 

“Hmm.”

 

“Why don’t you get some sleep and look at it tomorrow morning? You’ve been looking at it too long. I know I get stuck when I try to code a whole program in one sitting.”

 

Ben smiled. “Babe, I have no idea what that means.”

 

“I have no idea what Wall Street insider trading is.”

 

“I still love you, though,” Ben said, stealing another kiss and delighting in the exasperated sound that escaped him. “C’mon, let’s go to bed.”

 

“Oh, great idea, I wonder who thought of that,” Ethan grumbled before rising to his feet and calling for Cooper, who was likely still bothering Nebula. As he headed towards the bedroom, Ben exited out of the fifty tabs open on his laptop, took a deep breath, and shut the device. There was always tomorrow. Tomorrow, he would try again.

 

“Ben?”

 

“Yeah,” he said, setting the laptop down, “I’m coming.”

  
  
  



End file.
